Ji Han Liu Zhang

Under the strong urging of General Cao Cao, Emperor Liu Xie, under the pressure of Cao Cao's power, responded to the request of his ministers and agreed to the appointment of Grand Marshal and General of Cavalry Liu Zhang as King of Shu.

Xudu, the general’s mansion.

Guo Jia was not wearing official uniform, but a single garment with a scarf. He was sitting at the table with his body not straight and upright, but with his legs apart, doing whatever he was comfortable with, looking like a playboy. This was his nature, and he was not willing to hide it, not even in front of the great General Cao Cao.

"At this moment, the place you occupy is in the center of the world, surrounded by enemies on all sides. If you are attacked in any two places, you will be stretched thin and the situation will be precarious. It will be difficult to protect it. Fortunately, you are assisting the emperor and supporting him in Xudu, and you hold the great justice of the world in your hands." Guo Jia spoke eloquently, explaining his views to Cao Cao who was sitting above him.

"The emperor is the ruler of all people. Although the princes of the world are independent, they still maintain a certain respect for the emperor. Therefore, they are not reckless and will not attack you easily to avoid being branded as a traitor. You can be safe for now."

At this point, Guo Jia felt a little dry in the mouth. He picked up a glass of wine and drank it. After moistening his lips and tongue, he continued, "Liu Zhang of Guanzhong and Yuan Shao of Jizhou are your strong enemies. Apart from these two, the princes of the world, such as Yuan Shu of Huainan, Liu Biao of Jingzhou, and Lu Bu of Xuzhou, are either mediocre or guard dogs. In the end, they cannot harm you and will not harm your plan."

"The plan now is to create a rift between Liu Zhang and Yuan Shao, so that they can lead their troops to attack. You can sit back in Xudu and watch the tigers fight. When the two tigers are tired of fighting, you can take advantage of the opportunity to defeat them. In this way, the kingdom can flourish and the hegemony can be achieved."

"What you said is very much in line with my opinion." General Cao Cao nodded with satisfaction. Since he met Guo Jia, he had a feeling of having a confidant, because Guo Jia always said what he was thinking, and his analysis, plans and strategies always hit the mark. If this isn't a confidant, then what is?

Meet late and hate.

Cao Cao drank a glass of wine happily. Regarding his meeting with Guo Jia, he just wanted to say "It's a pity that we met too late."

"Now I order the emperor to appoint Liu Jiyu as the King of Shu. With the weight of the kingship, people all over the world will certainly pay attention to Guanzhong. This is what is meant by "a tree that stands out in the forest will be blown down by the wind..." When Yuan Shao, Liu Biao and others hear this, they will focus on Guanzhong and will not even bother to visit Xu Du." Cao Cao sighed, and at the same time he did not forget that this was a good plan offered by Guo Jia.

"Fengxiao's plan is a good one. Based on the merits of this plan, I want to appoint Fengxiao as the military advisor and chief priest. I wonder what Fengxiao thinks."

"If my Excellency has given me the task, I will accept it." Guo Jia did not hesitate. He put down the wine glass in his hand, bowed slightly to Cao Cao, and accepted the position of military advisor and chief wine officer.

While they were drinking, they saw the counselor Dong Zhao rushing over.

"Gongren, please come and have a drink." Cao Cao called Dong Zhao. Although Dong Zhao had only known him for a short time, he could be considered his confidant.

Cao Cao led his troops to Luoyang to meet the emperor, but he was not very comfortable in Luoyang. After all, Luoyang was the old capital, and the emperor Liu Xie had a few confidants in Luoyang, and the generals who followed Liu Xie back to the east were his support. So he asked Dong Zhao for advice, and Dong Zhao suggested moving the capital to Xu County. Xu County was Cao Cao's territory. Once the capital was moved, he could get rid of the entanglement of many forces and keep the emperor firmly in his hands.

Establishing the capital in Xu was Dong Zhao's achievement. Because of the establishment of the capital in Xu County, Cao Cao regarded Dong Zhao as his confidant.

In addition, there was another incident that made Cao Cao value Dong Zhao. That was Dong Zhao, who was once a minister under Yuan Shao. Because his younger brother Dong Fang was in Zhang Miao's army, and Zhang Miao had a conflict with Yuan Shao, Yuan Shao believed the slander and wanted to punish Dong Zhao. So in order to protect himself, Dong Zhao requested to meet the emperor Liu Xie in Luoyang and take the opportunity to break away from Yuan Shao.

Even though Dong Zhao had a bad reputation with Yuan Shao, at a time when Cao Cao was plotting against Yuan Shao, the big brother in Hebei, Cao Cao felt at ease using Dong Zhao because of his background, and he felt comfortable using Dong Zhao because of his abilities.

When Dong Zhao heard Cao Cao's invitation to sit down, he first bowed to Cao Cao and then sat down. After sitting down, he did not rush to drink, but reported the news he brought: "Mingshang, Yuan Benchu ​​is dissatisfied with the post of Taiwei and has submitted a letter of resignation. There are many metaphors in the letter, which shows his dissatisfaction with Mingshang. It is a shame to be below Mingshang."

"Hiss." Hearing this, Cao Cao's mouth twitched. He had never thought that Yuan Shao would resign from the position of Grand Commandant so simply. He had originally thought that Yuan Shao would accept it, but now, it couldn't be resolved amicably.

After all, with his current strength, he absolutely could not confront Yuan Shao head-on. Thinking of this, Cao Cao suppressed his fear and worry in his heart, and he actually laughed out loud, leaving Dong Zhao, who came to deliver the news, confused.

In Dong Zhao's eyes, Yuan Shao was unwilling to accept the position of Grand Marshal and was extremely dissatisfied with Cao Cao. The current situation was unfavorable to Cao Cao, but Cao Cao did not care about it and instead laughed. It was really strange.

"Yuan Benchu ​​and I have been friends since our early years, and I know his character. The position of Grand Marshal certainly cannot satisfy Yuan Benchu's appetite. Since he does not want to be Grand Marshal, let him be the General, which should satisfy his appetite... Gongren, you go back and write a petition, requesting that Yuan Benchu ​​be appointed as the General. I will urge the Emperor to approve this request." Cao Cao drank a glass of wine, and leisurely gave the position of General to Yuan Shao.

"Mingsir, are you going to resign from the position of general?" Dong Zhao asked with concern. General was Cao Cao's current position, but now that it was given to Yuan Shao, Cao Cao was no longer the general, so he should resign.

Cao Cao nodded solemnly. He smiled slightly, with a sly smile on his face: "If you want to take it, you must give it first. Now the enemy is strong and I am weak, so I should be polite to the strong enemy... As for the position of general, it is just an empty position. What's the use of giving it to Yuan Shao? Even if I am a captain, the political situation is still under my control."

Hearing this, Guo Jia clapped his hands and said proudly: "Let Yuan Shao take the position of general and let him enjoy himself for a while. Sooner or later, the position of general will belong to you... Of course, in the future, you may not be interested in the position of general."

"What Fengxiao said is the same as mine." After listening to Guo Jia's words, Cao Cao felt as if he were bathed in spring breeze. The shame of being forced by Yuan Shao to resign from the post of general also disappeared in an instant.

"Yes." At this time, Dong Zhao bowed his hands and said yes, and then left. He came in a hurry and left in a hurry. He would submit a memorial to the emperor, asking Yuan Shao to be the general, and Cao Cao would resign the general. (End of this chapter)